3D TV prices, not as high as you think

There has been some negative press so far about 3D-ready TV pricing. We believe this is inaccurate as we are seeing 3D prices below similarly featured 2D prices from earlier this year. This should lead one to conclude that TV manufacturers and retailers are being relatively aggressive in regards to merchandising TVs.

By Ross Young and Mark Schutter, IMS Research May 31, 2010

There has been some negative press so far about 3D-ready TV pricing. We believe this is inaccurate as we are seeing 3D prices below similarly featured 2D prices from earlier this year. This should lead one to conclude that TV manufacturers and retailers are being relatively aggressive in regards to merchandising TVs. On the other hand, these prices exclude the $150-$200 active shutter glasses and $350-$400 3D Blu-ray player needed to enjoy 3D movies.

The tables below are excerpted from our Weekly Advertising and Next Generation TV Report and MAPscan database and reveal current minimum advertised prices (MAPs) for all announced 3D TVs, pricing comparisons between 2D and 3D models and advertised 3D pricing so far from 7 different retailers.

As shown in Table 2, comparing the currently available C8000 series of 3D-ready 240 Hz LED LCD models to the 2009 240 Hz LED B8000 series January 2010 pricing, we are actually seeing a lower MAP for the new 3D-ready model. In fact, the 3D models are selling for around a 10% discount. Calculated retailer margins are also approximately the same as last year’s 2D models.

3D-ready models made their first appearance in March 14 promotions and have been in the ad rotation for ten weeks. We see that the Samsung C7000 series has had the most promotional activity and has been discounted as much as 20% below MAP, as has the C8000 46” model despite limited availability. PDP models first appeared in ads in early May and have seen 10% discounts. With the Panasonic models soon to hit the ads, we will likely see more aggressive pricing on plasma soon.

So, TV brands and retailers are in no means gouging consumers on 3D. Pricing is below last year’s high end models for LCD and discounts have already been as high as 20%. Furthermore, we should expect lower prices and more discounting as more brands and retailers enter the 3D market.